2012 SPICE Cup: Six Top World Chess Players at Webster

This month Webster University and the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence
(SPICE) will bring six of the best chess players in the world — including two Webster
students — to Webster's home campus. They'll be competing in the 2012 SPICE Cup Invitational,
the highest-rated chess tournament of its kind in U.S. history.

The tourney kicks off with a free and open-to-the-public Welcome Ceremony at 1 p.m.
on Friday, Oct. 12, in Room 102 of Webster's East Academic Building, 545 Garden Ave.
in Webster Groves, Mo.

For full details and to learn about the competitors, see the full text of the University
press release below:

Event is the Highest-Rated International Round Robin Chess Tournament in U.S. History

ST. LOUIS, Oct. 8, 2012 – Six of the best chess players in the world – two of them
members of the new Webster University chess team – will compete in the 2012 SPICE
CUP Invitational tournament, to be held Oct. 12-21 on the Webster University campus.
This historic tournament is a FIDE (International Chess Federation) category 18 event,
making it the highest-rated chess tournament of its kind in U.S. history.

Grandmaster Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), former World Junior champion and French
champion and No. 1 player in France.

Grandmaster Ding Liren (China), three-time and reigning champion of China, and the
No.3 Junior in the world.

Grandmaster Csaba Balogh (Hungary), member of the Hungarian National chess team and
top-notch chess author.

Grandmaster Wesley So (Philippines), national champion, No. 1 player in the Philippines and a Webster University
freshman.

Grandmaster Georg Meier (Germany), European team champion and Webster University sophomore and co-captain
of the Webster University chess team.

The SPICE CUP Invitational tournament kicks off with a free and open-to-the-public
Welcome Ceremony at 1 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 12, in Room 102 of Webster's East Academic
Building, 545 Garden Ave. in Webster Groves. During tournament play, the six competitors
will face one another twice, once with black chess pieces and once with white pieces.

* * *

About Susan Polgar and SPICE

Chess Grandmaster Susan Polgar, World and Olympiad Champion, and her Susan Polgar
Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE) relocated to Webster University from Texas
Tech University on June 1 2012. In addition, all key members of the reigning national
collegiate champion Texas Tech “A” chess team transferred to Webster and are now enrolled
at the University. Webster's No. 1-ranked chess team includes eight Grandmasters and
two International Masters.

Polgar, who is one of the strongest female chess players in history, is the winner
of four world championships and the only world champion in history – male or female
– to win the Triple-Crown (Rapid, Blitz and Classical Chess world championships).
She is the first woman to break the gender barrier to qualify for the Men's World
Championship Cycle, earn the Men's Grandmaster title, and to receive the Grandmaster
of the Year Award.

At Webster, SPICE and Polgar are leaders in promoting chess as a vehicle for global
diversity and academic excellence, for enriching the education of children and for
promoting women's chess. In 2011, Polgar became the first female head coach to lead
a men's collegiate Division 1 chess team (Texas Tech University) to the national title,
a feat she repeated in 2012.

About Webster University

With its home campus in St. Louis, Webster University (www.webster.edu) is the only Tier 1, private, non-profit U.S.-based university providing a network
of international residential campuses. Founded in 1915, Webster University's campus
network today includes metropolitan, military and corporate locations around the world,
as well as traditional residential campuses in Asia, Europe and North America. The
university is committed to delivering high-quality learning experiences that transform
students for global citizenship and individual excellence.